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Jiang Wan
Jiang Wan (onyomi: Shō En) is a Shu official who is known as one of the Four Ministers. Throughout his career, he was known as a man who excelled in political endeavors, to which Zhuge Liang praised him to embody the will of the nation. After Zhuge Liang's death, it was Jiang Wan's composure and intellect which was said to have kept the retainers' spirits high. Biography Edit He entered Shu together with Liu Bei as a zhou shu zuo and was later promoted to the head of Guang Du county. Liu Bei, on an inspection, suddenly came to Guang Du and saw a drunken Jiang Wan neglecting his official duties. Liu Bei was angered by what he saw and had wanted to convict and punish Jiang Wan severely. However, Zhuge Liang interceded and said, “Jiang Wan is a pillar of our country and his talents should not be restricted to governing a small county. His ideals stresses firmly on a stable and peaceful state for the commoners while never emphasizing on decorated appearances. I hope my Lord further investigates the manner.” Liu Bei had always respected Zhuge Liang and thus decided not to convict Jiang Wan while only stripped away his office in haste. After this incident, Jiang Wan dreamt of a bull’s head hanging in front of a door, with blood dripping down continually. He detested this dream and summoned Zhao Zhi, a dreams sayer, to find out the underlying message of his dream. Zhao Zhi replied that it was most evident that a bull’s horn with a nose illustrates the word ‘Gong’ (Duke) and the dream was, as a matter of fact, auspicious in nature as he would surely gain promotion. After a rather short period of time, Jiang Wan was conferred the Governor of Shen Fang county. When Liu Bei became the Prince of Han Zhong, Jiang Wan started to serve as the Shang Shu Lang in the Imperial Court. In the first year of Jian Xing, Zhuge Liang established the Prime Minister’s Office and announced Jiang Wan as the Dong Cao Yuan. He was later recommended as Mao Cai but insisted that the appointment go to Liu Yi,Yin Hua, Pang Yan and Liao Chun. Zhuge Liang thus advised, “You had left your family and land to serve the people. Hence, all the more you should accept this recommendation as it not only proved that you gained the office by your own merits, it also proved the integrity and seriousness of of the selection process.” Jiang Wan was later promoted to be a Can Jun (advisor). In the Fifth Year, with Zhuge Liang stationed in Han Zhong, Jiang Wan and Chang Shi ''Zhang Yi was in charge of affairs in the Prime Minister’s office. In the Eighth Year, Jiang Wan succeeded Zhang Yi’s appointment and was conferred the rank of ''Fu Jun Jiang Jun''In his many expeditions, Jiang Wan was always able to supply sufficient food and soldiers to Zhuge Liang. Zhuge Liang often said, “Gong Yan who repaid the country with loyalty and integrity shall be the person who would assist me in conquering China.” Indeed, Zhuge Liang petitioned Liu Shan secretly stating, “If anything untoward happen to me, you should entrust the various tasks to him.”After the death of Zhuge Liang, Liu Shan made him the ''Shan Shu Ling, increased his rank to Du Hu Jiang Jun and gave him the office of Fu Jie and Yi Zhou Ci Shi. He was later promoted to Da Jiang Jun, continued to record happenings in the Imperial court and was conferred the title of An Yang Ting Hou. At that time, Zhuge Liang had just passed away and many people were feeling dejected. In this period, Jiang Wan’s talents stood out among the many officials as he maintained composure with no sad or happy emotions while carrying out his duties just as the way he did in the past. The various officials gradually respected and admired him for that. In Yan Xi first year, Liu Shan in an Imperial edict, ordered Jiang Wan to organize the army and position them in Han Zhong to wait for Wu’s actions and react when the time permits for a full scale invasion. This was because the rebellion in Liao Dong was seen as a God’s given chance to rid China of Cao Rui. Liu Shan also ordered Jiang Wan to establish his own administrative office. In the next year, Jiang Wan was duly promoted to the rank of Da Si Ma. Yang Xi was a man who treated people with few courtesy and at times, in conversations with Jiang Wan, ignored the latter completely. Someone tried to frame Yang Xi and insisted to Jiang Wan Yang Xi’s rudeness in disobeying his superior. Jiang Wan replied, “Man’s characters, just as his appearance, has many variations. We should be wary of those who say approving things in front of you, yet criticize with malice at your back. It was never Yang Xi’s intention to agree with me and if he did not agree with me, he feared that open disapproval would reveal my weakness greatly. Therefore, he chose not to speak to demonstrate his honesty and sincerity.”In another incident of the similar type, Yang Min once mediocrity Jiang Wan of mediocracy, ignorance and in fact, inferior compared with his predecessors. Someone told this to Jiang Wan and hoped Jiang Wan would investigate and punish Yang Min. Jiang Wan, however, agreed that he was indeed incomparable with the talents of yesteryears and hence, refused to further investigate the matter. The man again appealed that Yang Min had no proof of Jiang Wan being such a person. Jiang Wan however replied that since he was incomparable to the saints, that would mean that what he had done was indeed unreasonable and by being unreasonable, he would be a mediocre leader too. Hence, Jiang Wan felt that there was no need to trial Yang Min. In later years, Yang Min was jailed for committing a crime and everyone was worried that he would surely die. However, Jiang Wan remained impartial and Yang Min was relieved of a heavy sentence. All these proved that Jiang Wan was a man who praised good and hated evil, and was in fact, a most reasonable man. Jiang Wan always felt that the reasons for Zhuge Liang’s failure was due to the difficulties in navigating the perilous terrain and the problems it posed for the transporting of supplies. Hence, he reasoned that an invasion route east to the river would be easier and built vessels to attempt attacking Wei from Han Shui and Mian Shui toward Wei Xing and Shang Yong. Coincidentally, his illness had a relapse and hence he did not had the time to fully implement this plan. Indeed, the officers had argued that such a route would pose problems for retreat in defeats and hence was not a viable long term plan. The court thus sent Fei Yi and Jiang Wei as representatives to present their arguments. Jiang Wan accepted the order and replied to Liu Shan, “It was my duty to restore peace and extinguish Cao Wei. In the six years that I stayed in Han Zhong, incompetency coupled with illness and the lack of success in formulating stratagems had made me relatively uneasy. Wei had 9 provinces and its influence growing deep among the people. Eliminating them would be a daunting task. If Wu allied with us, we can at least form the Ox-Horn formation and though this does not guarantee immediate success, we can, at the very least, slowly advance and destroy its supporting border areas. However, Wu was often slow in meeting our dates for common invasion, which resulted in our defeats at times and predicaments upon withdrawals. Indeed, this issue is most worrying and upon discussions with Fei Yi, we agreed that Liang Zhou is an advantageous and strategic land in the Northern territories as it’s easy to advance while attacking, and retreat while defending. This was precisely why Cao Wei also considered the province to be important. Moreover, The Qiang and Hu tribes missed Han rule and their bravery can be seen in Guo Huai’s defeats. Hence, after considering the pros and cons, we concluded that the imperative need is to use Jiang Wei as Liang Zhou Ci Shi. If Jiang Wei attacked and was brought to a halt, I would then command troops to reinforce the rear position and be his reinforcements. With the advanced waterways in the Fu river, transport would be fairly efficient for emergency deployment purposes. If the North have any form of insurgencies, we can then advance with less difficulties.” Role in GamesEdit In the Dynasty Warriors series, Jiang Wan serves in Shu's late battles such as Hanzhong and Wuzhang Plains. In''Dynasty Warriors 7, he fights against Wei during Cao Shuang's invasion and later on, Jiang Wei's Northern Expeditions. He assumes a similar role in the sequel, which also has him present during Wei's hypothetical route at Baidi Castle. In ''Warriors Orochi, Jiang Wan serves as Zhuge Liang's replacement officer during Shu's attack on Koshi Castle.Musou OROCHI Z has him do the same for Jiang Wei in one of the original dream stages. Jiang Wan has one of the highest politics stats in''Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Due to his high intelligence and charisma, he is among the best officers to use for domestic affairs. In the eleventh installment, his skill allows for more production of weapons, allowing the player to equip his troops faster and cheaper. Historical InformationEdit Born in Lingling commandery in Jing Province, Jiang Wan became a renowned person in his early 20's alongside his cousin Liu Min. He joined Liu Bei after the latter conquered southern Jing Province from Cao Cao's forces and followed him into Shu. Liu Bei put him in charge of Guangdu county after capturing Yi. One time, Liu Bei inspected Guangdu and saw a drunken Jiang Wan, who neglected his duties. Liu Bei was angered and wished to punish him, but Zhuge Liang was able to convince him otherwise, pointing out his talents and fair character. Liu Bei gave in and only stripped Jiang Wan off his position. Some time later, Jiang Wan had a dream about a bull's head hanging in front of a door, with blood dripping from it. Jiang Wan consulted Zhao Zhi, a dreams sayer, who told him that it was an auspicious sign hinting that he would be promoted. When Liu Bei took the title of King of Hanzhong, Jiang Wan was promoted to Governor of Shenfang. He then got a position within Liu Bei's court. Liu Bei died in 223 and Jiang Wan was given a position in Zhuge Liang's staff, tasked with bringing officials into service. Jiang Wan was recommended as ''Maocai for his outstanding performance, but he insisted that the appointment should go to other men. Zhuge Liang told him to accept the recommendation, stating that he left his family and home to serve the state and gained it through his own merit. Jiang Wan then became an adviser. Zhuge Liang stationed himself in Hanzhong in 227 and Jiang Wan was put in charge of the Prime Minister's affairs together with Zhang Yi. In 230, Jiang Wan succeeded Zhang Yi's appointment. He would always supply the Shu army with sufficient food and men in Zhuge Liang's various campaigns, earning him great praise from the latter. Zhuge Liang wrote to Shu emperor Liu Shan that should anything happen to him, Jiang Wan should succeed him. Indeed, when Zhuge Liang died in 234, Jiang Wan received a great promotion and eventually succeeded Zhuge Liang's position as Prime Minister. Jiang Wan was greatly respected by the other officials for keeping his composure while carrying out his duties just as well as in the past. In 238, Liu Shan ordered Jiang Wan to prepare the army in Hanzhong in case the Wu army would make a move, allowing them to start a full-scale invasion on Wei. The reason for this was the rebellion of Gongsun Yuan in Liaodong, who was allied with Wu and sought their assistance. However, the rebellion was crushed the same year and Jiang Wan did not have a chance to launch a campaign. A man named Yang Xi was not well-liked by other officials and behaved harshly, even ignoring Jiang Wan in some of their conversations. One of the officials complained to Jiang Wan about Yang Xi, but Jiang Wan said to him that one should rather be weary of someone who always approved another one's decision in front of him, but criticized him behind his back. Yang Xi on the other hand would not speak in order to not reveal Jiang Wan's weaknesses by openly disapproving him. On another occasion, a man named Yang Min spoke lowly of Jiang Wan, stating that he would be ignorant and inferior to his predecessor. Another man who overheard this went to Jiang Wan and told him of it in hope that he would punish Yang Min. Jiang Wan, however, agreed with Yang Min and when the man tried to push him towards punishing Yang Min even more, Jiang Wan stated that due to being incomparable to the saints, his actions would be unreasonable and thus he would indeed be a mediocre leader. Later, when Yang Min committed a crime, Jiang Wan spared him of heavy punishment. Jiang Wan felt that Zhuge Liang's failure in his campaigns was due to the mountain passes that made it difficult to transport supplies. Thus, he planned to build vessels in order to attack Wei through the Han and Mian Rivers. Jiang Wan became ill, however, and the plan was not implemented. Still, Liu Shan sent Fei Yiand Jiang Wei to present their arguments against such a plan, as it would pose difficulties when retreating. Jiang Wan wrote a letter to Liu Shan, which read: Jiang Wan returned to Fu county in order to make preparations. However, he died one year later in 246 and was succeeded by Fei Yi. Romance of the Three KingdomsEdit Jiang Wan has a smaller role in Romance of the Three Kingdoms than in actual history. At first, numerous chapters refer to him getting promoted. In chapters 87 to 89, he additionally joins the pacification of theNanman tribes in Nanzhong. There, he criticized Lu Kai's shelters and pointed out their danger to fire, but Zhuge Liang comforted him. Later, he urged Zhuge Liang to return home as their troops were exhausted and Meng Huo's fighting spirit was broken after his numerous defeats, but Zhuge Liang disagreed. In chapter 96, he asked Zhuge Liang to spare Ma Su, but Zhuge Liang refused, citing Sun Zi. When Zhuge Liang wept, Jiang Wan asked why he did so, and Zhuge Liang answered that he wept because he did not heed Liu Bei's advice to not give Ma Su an important post. In chapter 101, he and Fei Yi managed to save Li Yan's life. In chapter 105, Jiang Wan argued in favor of Yang Yi when Wei Yan rebelled after Zhuge Liang's death. He was later promoted to Prime Minister and ordered Wang Ping and Zhang Ni to guard Baidicheng in case Wu would use Zhuge Liang's death as an opportunity to attack. His death is mentioned in chapter 107.Jiang Wan (died 246), courtesy name Gongyan, was an official of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. In 234, he succeeded Zhuge Liang as the regent for the Shu emperor Liu Shan and for over the next decade continued domestic policies that allowed the Shu Han to prosper. In late 243, Jiang developed a severe illness where over the next three years until his death, began to slowly delegate his responsibilities to his eventual successor and his assistant deputy, Fei Yi and Dong Yun. Contents Early careerEdit Jiang Wan was from Lingling Commandery (零陵; in present-day northwestern Hunan), and both he and his brother-in-law Liu Min (劉敏) were known for their intelligence when they were young. It is not known how he became a subordinate under Liu Bei, but what is known is that when Liu Bei entered and conquered Yi Province (益州; covering the Sichuan Basin andChongqing), Jiang Wan was part of his army, and after Liu Bei's success, Jiang Wan was made a county magistrate. Once, when Liu Bei visited the county, he was surprised and angered that Jiang Wan was not personally handling the county affairs and was, on that occasion, drunk. He wanted to execute Jiang Wan, but Zhuge Liang persuaded him not to—reasoning that, based on what he knew, Jiang Wan was a capable supervisor and had delegated the matters to proper personnel, and therefore on that occasion could rest. Jiang Wan, however, was still removed from his post. When Zhuge Liang became regent for Liu Bei's son Liu Shan in 223 after Liu Bei's death, he made Jiang Wan a key assistant. During Zhuge Liang's regencyEdit During Zhuge Liang's regency, he appreciated Jiang Wan's talents, and Jiang's role in government gradually grew more and more important. When Zhuge Liang started his Northern Expeditions against the rival state of Cao Wei in 227, Jiang Wan was one of the key officials remaining in the Shu capital of Chengdu to handle domestic matters. In 230, he became a chief assistant to Zhuge Liang, and was in charge of logistics. He made sure that the food and manpower supplies were sufficient, and Zhuge Liang praised him in this way: "Gongyan (Jiang Wan's style name) is both faithful and open-minded, and he and I will together serve the emperor in great things". In 231, when Zhuge Liang's vice-regent Li Yan was discovered to have repeatedly lied to him and Liu Shan, Li Yan was removed from his post. Jiang Wan, while not given the same post, became even more important. When Zhuge Liang grew ill on his final campaign against Wei in 234, Liu Shan sent messengers to inquire of him as to who should succeed him. Zhuge Liang recommended Jiang Wan as his successor, and Fei Yi as Jiang's eventual successor. After Zhuge Liang's death later that year, Jiang Wan became regent. As regentEdit As regent, Jiang Wan was a capable administrator, and he continued Zhuge Liang's domestic policies, leaving the government largely efficient. He was also known for his tolerance of dissension and his humility. When Yang Min (楊敏) criticized him for being ineffective and not being as good at his job as his predecessor, Jiang Wan's response was, "Indeed, I am not as good as my predecessor," and he did not punish Yang Min. Jiang Wan, not having military aptitude, soon abandoned Zhuge Liang's policy of waging war against Wei, and indeed in 241 withdrew most of the troops from the important border city of Hanzhong to Fu (涪縣; in present-day Mianyang, Sichuan). From that point on, Shu was generally in a defensive posture and no longer posed a threat to Wei. This was misinterpreted by manyEastern Wu officials as a sign that Shu was abandoning the alliance and entering into a treaty with Wei, but was correctly read by Wu's emperor Sun Quan as merely a sign of weakness, not an abandonment of the alliance. At one point, Jiang considered sending an army heading east on the Han River to attack Wei's Weixing (魏興; in present-day Ankang, Shaanxi) and Shangyong (上庸; in present-day Shiyan, Hubei), but did not actually carry out those plans. In 243, Jiang Wan grew ill and transferred most of his authority to Fei Yi and Dong Yun. In 244, when Wei's regent Cao Shuangattacked Hanzhong, it was Fei Yi who led the troops against Cao Shuang and dealt Wei a major defeat. Jiang Wan, however, remained influential until his death in 246. He was given the posthumous name "Gong" (恭, literally, "respectful"). Appointments and titles heldEdit *Provincial Assistant Secretary (州書佐) *Chief of Guangdu (廣都長) *Prefect of Shifang (什邡令) *Gentleman of the Imperial Secretariat (尚書郎) *East Assistant Officer in the Chancellor's Office (丞相府東曹掾) *Maocai (茂才) *Chief Imperial Secretary (尚書令) *Inspector of Yi Province (益州刺史) *General-in-Chief (大將軍) *Imperial Secretary (錄尚書事) *Marquis of Anyang (安陽亭侯) *Grand Marshal (大司馬) *Gong (恭) - granted to Jiang Wan posthumously Category:Characters Category:Confederate Officers